Old vines: age is no promise

The standard

The documented age names the planting year of the plot rather than a feeling: only the lower yield per vine, not the age itself, changes the wine.

Criteria

• The planting year of the plot is documented, not guessed
• The lower yield per vine is the cause, not age alone
• The advantage shows in the wine, not on the label
• No minimum age is set anywhere in law

Distinction

Old vines ≠ old wine: one concerns the vine, the other the bottle. The documented age describes the planting, not the maturity of the wine in it.